FBI: Fake Underwear Bomb Plot Proves Need for Warrantless Surveillance

Congressmen: Media Risks War by Revealing 'Bomber' Was CIA Employee

by Jason Ditz, May 09, 2012

The underpants were real, but the plot to blow up an airliner over the US wasn’t.

Though it turns out that the so-called bomber unveiled by the Obama Administration on the anniversary of Osama bin Laden’s assassination turned out to be a CIA employee, officials still continue to try to make hay out of him being “foiled” to their own ends.

FBI Director Robert Mueller, whose bureau had absolutely nothing to do with the CIA manufactured plot, cited it as proof that Congress needs to extend his ability to conduct electronic surveillance without a warrant.

“The amendments that are up for passage again — reenactment — at the end of this year [are] absolutely essential in our efforts to address this threat.” Mueller insisted. At no point did Mueller make it clear why he’d need to conduct electronic surveillance on a CIA employee in the first place.

The whole “the bomber was a CIA planted fake” part of this story really does harm the credibility of such claims, even if officials don’t want to cop to it too directly. To that end Reps. Pete King (R – NY) and Charles Ruppersberger (D – MD) are loudly condemning the media for going public with that part of the story, with King accusing them of threatening the entire war effort and Ruppersberger claiming that the media put lives at risk with their honesty.

Last 5 posts by Jason Ditz